Integrated database to help address housing issue: Zuraida

KUALA LUMPUR: The integrated housing database set up by the Housing and Local Government Ministry would address the issue of home ownership in the country, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.

Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin (pix) said the database would also help prevent the issue of unsold houses as well as construction at non-strategic locations.

“This database allows the ministry to do analysis so that the houses will be built in accordance with the requirements and can be adjusted in terms of the design, prices, types and so on,“ she said in reply to a question from Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir (PH-Jerlun) here.

Commenting further, Zuraida said the database set up under the previous 1Malaysia People’s Housing Project (PR1MA) was different because it only involved housing demand figures and had no complete data on several other aspects such as income and social factors.

Hence, she said there was a mismatch in the construction of the houses, thus causing many unsold homes.

Zuraida said the ministry was committed to build one million homes within 10 years involving collaboration with various agencies and private sector.

Targeting the construction of 100,000 units per year, the ministry is involved in building nearly 60% or 546,000 units of affordable houses while 155,788 units by other ministries, state governments (153,212 units) and private sector (145,000 units). — Bernama